Pair charged in alleged con that netted $31G from Saddle Rock senior
Two Long Islanders allegedly conned an 83-year-old victim out of $31,000 after calling to tell him his computer had been compromised. Credit: iStock/Paul Michael Hughes
In January, a Saddle Rock senior was logged onto his home computer when he received a message: his device had been compromised and he needed to contact the phone number on his screen for assistance.
The message was only partially honest.
The 83-year-old victim's computer had been compromised, but the perpetrators were, in fact, the two men who sent the unsolicited message, who ultimately conned him out of $31,000, Nassau police said Tuesday.
After a nearly four-month investigation, Rong Chen, 47, of Fresh Meadows, Queens, and ZhenSheng Yu, 46, of Syosset, were arrested and charged Monday by detectives from Nassau's Robbery Squad, its Fraud and Forgery Unit and the Sixth Squad.
Rong was arraigned Monday in District Court in Hempstead, where he pleaded not guilty to third-degree grand larceny, while Yu pleaded not guilty Tuesday during his arraignment on an identical charge.
Both defendants were released on their own recognizance and are due back in court April 15.
Attorneys for Chen and Yu did not respond to requests for comment.
Major Case Squad detectives said the unidentified Saddle Rock man logged onto his personal computer Jan. 18 and received the notification that his device had been compromised. A Nassau police spokesman said the device appears to have been hacked and there was no indication the victim clicked on a suspicious website or link.
One of the suspects allegedly told the victim he worked for Microsoft and suspicious activity had been discovered on the victim's phone and with his personal bank account. The suspect then instructed the victim to withdraw $16,000 in cash to fix the problem, police said.
The man complied and Chen collected the funds the following day, police said. The victim was contacted again for an additional $15,000 in cash and complied, with Yu collecting the cash on Jan. 20, authorities said. When the man was contacted a third time, he refused to comply and contacted police.
The suspects were identified by the victim's Ring doorbell camera and an image taken on his cellphone, according to charging documents.
Bernard Macias, AARP New York's Long Island-based associate state director for community outreach, said scams targeting seniors have become “rampant” in recent years.
He recommends that seniors refuse to engage with suspicious callers, particularly those demanding cash.
“Trust your instincts,” Macias said. “Sometimes things just don't sound right.”
In 2023, people 60 and older were scammed out of a combined $1.92 billion, according to data from the Federal Trade Commission.
In New York State last year, authorities investigated more than 36,000 impostor scams — when an individual attempts to convince a victim they are someone in authority or a trusted individual — nearly double any other category, the FTC said.
Nassau police urged residents to remind vulnerable family members, friends and neighbors about potential scams.
Anyone with information about the recent scam is urged to contact Nassau Crime Stoppers at 800-244-TIPS or to call 911. All callers will remain anonymous.
Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.
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